Ex-AIT chief urges China to give Tsai time

Taipei, Jan. 16 (CNA) The former director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), William Anthony Stanton, urged China Saturday to give Taiwan's President-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) some time, because he knows Tsai wants stable cross-Taiwan Strait relations.

Stanton, who held the AIT position from August 2009 to August 2012, made the call during a visit to Tsai's campaign headquarters in Taipei.

Tsai won the presidential election Saturday under the flag of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which leans toward a preference for independence for Taiwan. She will become the first female president of Taiwan upon her inauguration on May 20.

Describing Tsai as smart and cautious, Stanton noted that Tsai has had contact with China before. On cross-strait ties, she will want stability, he said.

A new government has to handle many challenges, including issues concerning pensions, education, labor force and cross-strait links, he said, adding that China "should be patient."

For Tsai, he suggested that she should send a representative or make a phone call to Beijing to make clear her stance. Stanton now resides in Taiwan, where he works at National Tsing Hua University as senior vice president for global affairs.

(By Lu Hsin-huei and Elizabeth Hsu; click here for the full coverage of the elections.) ENDITEM/J